THE Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) on Thursday, July 3, led a high-level consultation with stakeholders to address violence and rights violations against non-Moro indigenous peoples (NMIPs) in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) at Camp Siongco in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte.
Presidential Peace Adviser Carlito Galvez Jr. presided over the meeting which gathered together representatives from national agencies, BARMM ministries, cultural minority groups, local governments, non-government organizations, and security forces to craft recommendations for protecting NMIPs through a “whole-of-government, whole-of-society” approach.
President Marcos, in a statement, called the IPs “invaluable guardians” of the nation’s heritage, while Galvez underscored their role in shaping Mindanao’s history and identity.
“We are truly blessed to have such a distinct and lively roster of indigenous groups from the northern mountains of Luzon down to the southern islands of Mindanao,” Marcos said.
